‘Historic’ meeting of Celtic organisations working towards self-determination takes place

Stephen Price

Representatives of leading civic and political organisations from Wales, Scotland and Ireland/Northern Ireland have met in Cardiff for the first time to discuss how their respective campaigns for self-determination can work together.

The historic summit, Celtic Nations in Partnership – A Strategic Summit on Self-Determination, was convened by YesCymru following months of discussions and relationship-building with organisations across Scotland and Ireland/Northern Ireland.

The meeting brought together representatives of:

• YesCymru
• Ireland’s Future
• SDLP
• Plaid Cymru
• Green Party Wales
• Believe in Scotland
• Business for Scotland
• Common Weal
• Scottish Independence Forum

The gathering represents the first known meeting bringing together civic campaigns and organisations from across the three nations around their shared interest in self-determination.

Participants agreed that there is significant potential for the movements to strengthen one another by sharing knowledge, research, experience and expertise, and by amplifying each other’s campaigns and activity.

There was broad agreement that the meeting should be the beginning of an ongoing process rather than a one-off event.

Two further gatherings were agreed in principle, with the next meeting proposed for Ireland in November, followed by a further gathering in Scotland.

United by three movements

The summit was initiated by YesCymru, which began developing relationships with organisations in Scotland and Ireland/Northern Ireland several months ago.

Those conversations led to the first gathering in Cardiff, where participants were able to discuss their respective political contexts, the challenges facing their movements and the opportunities presented by greater cooperation.

Rather than seeking to establish a new organisation or impose a formal structure, the summit focused on identifying practical ways in which the existing movements could support one another.

Areas discussed included: sharing research, knowledge and expertise; exchanging experience from different self-determination campaigns; supporting and amplifying campaigns across the three nations; developing stronger direct relationships between organisations; identifying opportunities for practical cooperation; and continuing the conversation through regular gatherings.

Sam Murphy, YesCymru Vice Chair, shared: “This was a genuinely significant moment. For the first time, representatives of civic movements and grassroots organisations working for Irish reunification and Welsh and Scottish independence sat around the same table and began a conversation about how we can work together.

“This did not happen overnight. YesCymru began these conversations many months ago because we recognised the value in bringing people together who are working in different nations but share a fundamental principle: that our nations should have the right to determine their own futures.

“We are not trying to create one organisation or tell anyone how they should run their campaign. The strength of this initiative is that each movement remains independent while recognising that we can achieve more by sharing what we know, supporting one another and amplifying each other’s work.

“It was clear to me that each nation has something unique to bring to the table that can help the others. Yes Cymru is currently campaigning for a referendum on independence for Wales in 2032. Ireland and Scotland are campaigning for their own respective referendums which may be within a year or two of that. We believe this summit, and the ones to follow, can be a huge strategic help in forwarding those aims.

“We welcome the impact of the recent meeting between our respective first ministers but we believe that winning hearts and minds at street level is what determines a successful outcome. That is what our respective organisations are focussed on.

“The agreement to meet again in Ireland in November, followed by a gathering in Scotland, shows that there is a genuine appetite to continue this work. What happened in Cardiff was the beginning of something, not the end of a conference.”

Historic gathering

The summit took place in Cardiff on Friday 25 September, immediately before YesCymru’s major independence march in Aberystwyth on Saturday.

The march subsequently attracted a large crowd of between 8,000 – 9,000 and was addressed by the First Minister of Wales, who spoke to demonstrators following the march.

The combination of the summit and the march, following on from the Cardiff Agreement made by the First Minsters of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, marked a significant week of activity for the Welsh independence movement, while also providing an opportunity for representatives from Scotland and Ireland/Northern Ireland to see the scale of grassroots activity in Wales.

The organisers stressed that the initiative is intended to develop practical cooperation between our movements.

The next gathering is expected to take place in Ireland in November 2026, hosted by Irelands Future, with further details to be agreed with participating organisations.

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